The sound of a body colliding with something metallic echoed through the wooden dojo constructed within the shared mindscape of Uriel and Shade.
"Hey, that hurt! What the hell is wrong with you today, Shade?" asked Uriel, looking at his other self, who was shaking his wrist with a calm expression but whose red eyes seemed to shine more intensely than ever.
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe I'm a bit angry with you. Can you guess why?"
"Because you missed the cliché thug scene?"
"No," Shade disappeared, reappearing above Uriel and launching an axe kick, which Uriel blocked with his forearm, wincing at the force behind that attack.
"Then I don't understand what's wrong with you." Grabbing Shade's leg, Uriel threw him against the wall. However, Shade melted into the darkness of the dojo, emerging on the other side of the room.
"If it's not about missing the cliché, then why are you so angry?" asked Uriel, looking at Shade, who only sighed, running a hand over his face.
"Uriel, haven't you realized it yet?"
"Realized what exactly?"
"You truly are an idiot... The biggest idiot I've ever known."
Uriel wrinkled his face.
"Why? Because I told Cassie?"
Uriel blinked.
"All this is because of that? You're angry just because I told Cassie we're not from this world?"
Shade applauded sarcastically, a contemptuous smile appearing on his face.
"Correct. That's exactly it. You know what that girl is like."
Uriel nodded.
"Of course I do."
"Then if you know, why the hell did you tell her?! Weren't we supposed to keep that to ourselves?!" shouted Shade.
"Hey, calm down. Do you think it was easy for me? Hell, of course it wasn't... I told her because I trust Cassie enough to say it. And it's not like I told her everything—I just said we're not from this world, nothing more."
"That's the point, Uriel. Cassie's desire is to destroy fate. Tell me something: us, who are foreign to this world and whom the world seems to constantly try to eliminate... what do you think Cassie will do to achieve her goal? Won't she use everything at her disposal?"
"I don't think—"
Shade appeared beside Uriel, landing a kick on his ribs. Uriel felt all the air escape his lungs, then his body slammed against the metal alloy of his mental space.
"Fool," Shade snorted through his nose.
"You've already forgotten everything that girl did. Crimson Spire, the Chained Isles, the eastern part of Antarctica, not to mention the third Nightmare. Damn it. That girl guided all the events. And you go and tell her you're not part of this world, so fate doesn't affect you as much? Do you understand what I'm getting at?" asked Shade.
"I do," said Uriel, getting back up.
"But you forget that maybe she's changed. After all, this isn't the original world. It's just one among many worlds."
"I don't give a damn if this is the original world or a copy. The point is, Uriel, you screwed up."
Uriel fell silent.
"So, what should I have done, according to you?"
"Kept your mouth shut and not said those words," Shade sighed. "But whatever, the cat's out of the bag now."
"Shade, you worry too much," said Uriel, approaching Shade with a calm step.
"Cassie can't see us in her visions. So even if she tries something against us, it will be practically impossible."
"Yes, that may be true, but you're forgetting one small, insignificant thing."
Uriel frowned.
"And what would that be?"
"That even when she can't see us, what happened on the Forgotten Shore still occurred. Through visions involving others, we'll be involved, and from there, she can make her Machiavellian plans."
"Shade, don't worry about that. I have a plan."
Shade looked at Uriel with narrowed eyes before sighing.
"Uriel, you're a fool... An utterly hopeless fool, in fact," said Shade.
"Thanks for stating the obvious," Uriel rolled his eyes.
"But even so, what you did was terrible."
"Don't worry. Cassie won't be able to do anything for a few months, and even then, it won't affect us until Ariel's Tomb. But there's another small detail."
"And what would that be?"
Uriel smiled.
"The cycles we went through in our second Nightmare," he explained.
Shade's eyes widened.
"Don't tell me that—"
"Yes, it's what you're thinking. We'll use Ariel's Tomb to our advantage. If my plan works as I want, it will give us a huge advantage in the future and plenty of knowledge along the way."
Shade brought a hand to his chin.
"It's a risky idea, and many things could go terribly wrong," murmured Shade, pacing back and forth.
"It's our biggest bet right now," said Uriel. "So you don't have to worry. For now, Cassie will only do maximum damage to the tapestry of fate by guiding Sunny to the tomb of... I think I forgot the name of that daemon. Anyway, where the Thieving Bird is, and when that happens, she'll lose her vision ability. So we're literally safe."
"That's if Sunny actually goes to the Heart of the Estuary."
"Don't worry. Even if events deviate, we'll just have to correct them subtly. After all, no one will know," said Uriel with a smile.
Shade sighed.
"Alright. I'll let you handle this. But listen to my words: if Cassie tries to use us or manipulate us, I'll use Soul to erase that memory or bury it so deeply that even as a Saint, she won't be able to find it."
"Agreed, and I won't stop you," said Uriel with a smile before putting on a serious face.
"Well, it's time to kill a Corrupted Terror and see if there really is a flying island," said Uriel, leaving his mental space, leaving Shade alone.
Shade stared at the empty space where Uriel had been just before.
Disappearing, Shade appeared in front of the countless scattered Memory fragments, his gaze focusing on one much larger than the rest. Inside the enormous fragment was an image of Uriel and himself looking toward a huge vortex where time tore and rippled without any sense.
Shade just astred at the fragment in silence for a while.
....
Uriel opened his eyes, standing up. Currently, he was in the underground dojo of his home. Even though he had been beaten by Shade in the mental training, he felt phantom pains.
'Today, Shade was stranger than usual. Though, well, his behavior has always been weird,' he thought.
Uriel appeared in the ruined city with a calm expression. His body was surrounded by sparks for a few seconds until he was covered by the Saint's Mantle. Then he summoned the Protection Necklace and the Royal Ring, and finally, he summoned the Crown of Repose.
Advancing with an animated step, he stopped in a certain area where someone was already waiting for him.
It took him no more than a few minutes to reach a wide space where a 50-meter-long dragon lay on the ground, its wings folded.
The dragon was a deep black like the night, with golden lines covering its body, as well as its horns made of gold and its bright golden eyes.
Its claws were as large as a person and as sharp as Transcendent swords, and its body was absolutely tough.
Of course, this was Gunlaug, the former lord of the Bright Castle whom he had killed two years ago and obtained his Echo. Then he turned him into a dark creature and fed him Memories until he reached the rank of a Transcendent Beast.
Although there was a small detail: he lacked human speech. It wasn't that he couldn't speak fluently like Soul, but his speech was poor. Even so, he was abnormally intelligent, as much or more than an average Awakened human, even a Master.
Uriel approached the dragon, which opened its eyes, staring at him fixedly.
"Did you find it?" asked Uriel.
The dragon nodded slightly and then looked to the west, in the direction of the Forgotten Shore.
"So, to the west."
The dragon let out a low, deep growl that rumbled in the surrounding space.
"I see. So there's a threat preventing us from getting closer?"
An affirmative growl came from the dragon's mouth.
"Is it Corrupted?"
The dragon looked at its master for a few seconds before letting out an affirmative growl.
"Tyrant or Terror?"
Two claw strikes resonated on the ground, leaving deep holes.
"So a Terror. Well, crap, and being in the air will make it difficult," murmured Uriel.
"Well, rest in my sea of souls until you recover. Then I'll summon you to kill the Terror."
After saying that, Uriel dismissed the dragon, which disappeared in a sea of sparks.
"So, how do we kill the Terror?" asked Shade, appearing out of nowhere.
Uriel didn't respond. He jumped, transforming his body to create two large raven wings, flying toward the wall surrounding the castle.
Shade walked calmly through the air at his own pace. Once Uriel reached the walls, he sat down, observing the ruined city below.
"I don't know," he responded, removing his Supreme-rank Memory to examine the enchantments.
Memory: Crown of Repose
Memory Rank: Supreme
Memory Level: I
Memory Description: [Long ago, there lived a rebellious princess who dreamed of having many adventures. One day, a badly wounded Stone Saint, on the brink of death, appeared before her, changing her life. The princess and the Saint lived many incredible adventures together. But knowing his life would soon end, he asked his friend for a promise: "If I ever become Corrupted, I hope you will be the one to end me." The Stone Saint didn't know how to respond at that moment but nodded, accepting the promise. However, he failed the princess again and again until his mind fragmented from pain and guilt. Filled with sorrow, the Stone Saint faced his greatest failure and said in a broken voice: "I'm sorry for not keeping the promise I made to you, but I can't kill you. Even now, I can't bring repose to your Corrupted being, so I can only make you sleep until I can die." And true to his words, the Stone Saint used a powerful one-time-use sorcery that put the beast to sleep in exchange for a great part of his life and being until it awakened.]
Enchantments: [Repose] [Betrayal] [Anchor]
Enchantment Description - Repose: [This enchantment allows the enemy to expend their power more quickly while the user's power recovers significantly during battle.]
Enchantment Description - Betrayal: [The wielder's power increases when fighting living creatures that surpass them in rank.]
Enchantment Description - Anchor: [The user becomes immune to mental attacks and loss of sanity as long as they possess anchors that remind them of who they are and their goal.]
....
"Alright, three enchantments. The first helps with essence recovery, the second increases power when fighting stronger things than me, and the third is mental protection," said Uriel.
"We don't know what this Corrupted Terror will be capable of, so these enchantments should work. We also have the Saint's Mantle, which is powerful sixth-level armor," said Shade.
"But just in case, we need to be prepared."
"Yes." Uriel and Shade observed the city for a few hours, and when the light of dusk began to fall, Uriel summoned Gunlaug, who had recovered from damage and fatigue, back at full energy.
Uriel jumped onto Gunlaug's head, and a moment later, the powerful Transcendent dragon began to soar through the skies at enormous speed.
As a Transcendent, Gunlaug obtained essence from his surroundings, but his greatest moment of strength was during the night, thanks to his Attributes.
While Uriel sat on the dragon's head, flying at high speed through the sky, he examined his runes.
Name: Gunlaug
Class: Beast
Dark Rank: Transcendent
Description: [A proud ruler, he considered himself a just king, ruling over his followers with an iron fist. All who challenged him perished under his great power. However, one day, the proud ruler encountered an unfathomably cruel darkness that ended his existence. In his agony, the proud ruler only heard the final words of the terrifying darkness: "Die on the throne you so cherish." Thus ended the life of the proud ruler of a cursed city.]
Attributes: [Darkness] [Fire] [Night] [Body of Steel]
Dark Creature Abilities: [Golden Soul Flame] [Combat Comprehension] [Conflagration] [All-Terrain]
Ability Description - Golden Soul Flame: [Gunlaug can unleash a flame so hot and bright it resembles the sun itself, burning not only the physical but also the very soul of his enemies.]
Ability Description - Combat Comprehension: [This ability allows Gunlaug to learn, memorize, and adapt to any combat style with terrifying efficiency.]
Ability Description - Conflagration: [Gunlaug can unleash a sea of incandescent flames upon his enemy, reducing them to ashes.]
Ability Description - All-Terrain: [This ability allows him to adapt to any type of terrain for combat, whether in the sky, on land, or underwater.]
Dark Fragments: 128/1500
Uriel looked at Gunlaug's abilities. Without a doubt, they were amazing, worthy of a Transcendent. If he wanted to turn him into a Supreme-rank creature, he needed 1500 Memories, which was a lot to achieve. Of course, there was another method: through a supreme challenge to achieve natural Supremacy.
Anyway, he wasn't in a hurry to make one of his creatures Supreme-rank. First, he needed to strengthen them and strengthen himself. If he managed to become Transcendent, he could challenge a fourth Nightmare or directly seek out a Cursed-rank creature and kill it to become a Supreme.
Uriel lay back, feeling the breeze caress his body. Looking at the blue sky, he closed his eyes and began to relax.